Are You Going to Do It?

Our office is on the outskirts of Richmond. We’re like many, and enjoy the proximity to the James River, and especially the many trails and small parks that dot our city.

We also like a nice sandwich and a cold brew from time to time. It was nice to recently combine that with our love of parks and beauty.

Richmond is where it is because of the James River. It’s the farthest you can go on the James before you hit whitewater. Below the city, it’s flat water to the Chesapeake. West of the city, you are again in flat water into Central Virginia. In 1972, city movers and shakers came up with an idea for a “great green bridge” to connect the Richmond business district with the river. In 1980, that vision came alive with pools, trees, fountains, and lawns that provided a beautiful oasis in the middle of Downtown. It was christened “Kanawha Plaza.”

And then Richmond kind of forgot about it. The city had neither the time nor money to care for the park. Fountains went dry, plantings died, and litter became rampant. A large contingent of homeless people took over the park, and it largely became an eyesore.

One of our favorite spots for suds and sandwiches is Capital Ale House. They have a few restaurants around Virginia, and one but a few blocks from Kanawha Plaza. They also have a program called “Beer Corps.” Volunteers from the restaurants make up the Beer Corps, and they periodically trade in their aprons and towels for gloves and shovels, and go around doing a bit of good. They chose to adopt Kanawha Plaza, and spent some time tidying up the park. They’ve made a commitment to keep going back, and eventually getting their name on an “Adopt a Spot” sign – “This Plaza is Cleaned By Capital Ale House.”

We have some other friends on social media called Canvass for Cannabis. You can guess their mission, but we’re friends with them because they love being outside. They surf, hike, swim, and especially get into riding bikes on the trails along the river. As you can imagine, they’re a pretty peaceful group, but they can get riled up. Catch them when they’re out for a ride and see that some yokel has decided to use their favorite trail as a garbage can. That’s when they channel their aggression and do a bit of cleaning. Check out one of their before and after pictures:

After: via Canvass for Cannabis
After: via Canvass for Cannabis
Before via: Canvass for Cannabis
Before via: Canvass for Cannabis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just to give you a sense of scope, let’s look at Virginia State Parks. We have 40 of those. Last year, almost 9 million people paid them a visit. That’s a lot of people, and they no doubt generated a good bit of trash. Did all of that garbage pick itself up? No. Park employees and volunteers did it.

That place where the Canvass guys like to ride? James River Park System. That’s 550 acres of woods and shoreline. They see over 500,000 visitors each year, and those yokels bring a good bit of trash. The James River Park System has all of about 5 employees, so do you know who helps keep it clean? Volunteers like Canvass for Cannabis.

In the grand scheme of things, we have a pretty big Commonwealth. We do not, however, have a legion of gnomes and fairies that keep it pretty. That’s up to us. We’re the ones – each and every one of us – who Keep Virginia Beautiful.